An interesting overview of NGOs in China – would love to read more about this, anyone have articles to share?
http://www.socialedge.org/features/expert-advice/archive/2010/07/22/ngos-in-china
-Sent from Read It Later
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Monthly Archives: August 2010
Seth’s Blog: Quieting the lizard brain
Quieting the lizard brain
How can I explain the never-ending irrationality of human behavior?
We say we want one thing, then we do another. We say we want to be successful but we sabotage the job interview. We say we want a product to come to market, but we sandbag the shipping schedule. We say we want to be thin but we eat too much. We say we want to be smart but we skip class or don’t read that book the boss lent us.
The contradictions never end. When someone shows up and acts without contradiction, we’re amazed. When an athlete just does the sport, or when a writer just writes the words, we can’t help but watch, astonished at the purity of their actions. Why is it so difficult to do what we say we’re going to do?
Last year – I found myself sometimes calling meetings because I was scared of what would happen if I just went ahead and didn’t something, and sometimes I found myself berated because I did things (which turned out great) without calling those meetings.
I think in the end – my impression is that if you believe in it, it’s better to just do it, and then deal with what happens as it goes on. As long as it’s not contradictory to what you’re there to do, and it’s consistent with what you stand for / want it’s going to be good (even if it’s not successful).
So… just do it! 🙂
Respect: New Beginning by Lisa
I love this blog post by my friend Lisa – being able to feel grateful, optimistic and happy in face of any challenge is a wonderful, beautiful skill!
Having a Friend and Being a Friend
Having friends is clearly one of the most critical things to a longer, happier and better life.
Now question is – how good are you at both having friends AND being one?
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-good-life/201007/having-friend-and-being-friend1 min reading: Killing our dreams « Paulo Coelho’s Blog
The first symptom of the process of our killing our dreams is the lack of time. The busiest people I have known in my life always have time enough to do everything. Those who do nothing are always tired and pay no attention to the little amount of work they are required to do. They complain constantly that the day is too short. The truth is, they are afraid to fight the Good Fight.
Are you in the process of killing your dreams? Then I beg you, plead to you, stop!
“If I Seek [Beauty] Elsewhere Because I Do Not Find Her at Home, My Search Will Prove a Fruitless One.” (from Google Reader)
“Such is beauty ever — neither here nor there, now nor then, neither in Rome nor in Athens, but wherever there is a soul to admire. If I seek her elsewhere because I do not find her at home, my search will prove a fruitless one."
— Henry David Thoreau
Sex Boosts Brain Growth, Study Suggests | Rat Sex | LiveScience
Sex apparently can
help the brain grow, according to new findings in rats.Sexually active
rodents also seemed less anxious than virgins, Princeton scientists discovered.Past findings had
shown that stressful, unpleasant events could stifle brain
cell growth in adults. To see if pleasant albeit stressful experiences
could have the opposite effect, researchers studied the effects of sex
in rats.Scientists played
matchmaker by giving adult male rats access to sexually receptive females
either once daily for two weeks or just once in two weeks. They also measured
blood levels of stress hormones known as glucocorticoids, which researchers
suspected might lie behind the detrimental effects that unpleasant experiences
have on the
brain.When compared with
male virgins, both groups of sexually active rats had cell proliferation, or an
increase in the number of neurons, in the hippocampus, a part of the brain
linked with memory whose
cells are especially sensitive to unpleasant experiences. The rats that had
more sex also had adult brain cells grow, as well as a rise in the number of
connections between brain cells.However, the rodents
that only saw females once in two weeks had elevated levels of stress hormones,
while the rats that had regular access showed no increase in the hormones.
Sexually experienced rodents also proved less anxious than virgins, in that
they were quicker to chomp down on food in unfamiliar environs.These findings
suggest that while stress hormones can be detrimental to the brain, these
effects can be overridden if whatever experiences triggered them were pleasant.The scientists
detailed their findings online July 14 in the journal PLoS ONE.
via livescience.com
The failure of “developed” societies (and Japan: A Story of Love and Hate)
via bbc.co.uk
I found myself the other day in front of this documentary about a story of rise and fall in a rich society – and it touched me!
The challenge of being different in a society (like many “modern” societies) that almost completely lack strong social bonds between people creates a loneliness that is undeniable strong. Further curiosity lead me to a Forbes study of happiness and well-being around the world, and then more material about suicide rates.
Interestingly – in many rich countries people are overall thriving and feel they have strong future prospect. However, day to day life experience is affected more by how well our psychological and social needs are filled – something that rich countries seemed much less adept at providing.
The failure of the “developed” societies to provide the adequate social community to take part not only in the successes but also the failures of the members of the society. It seems to me that true community building (not only that which connects us around a sports club…) is a skill that we need re-learning in many societies.